This practical, short guide offers basic information about the BDS movement. It provides (with footnotes and links) not only the history of BDS, but also case studies and best practices.

In particular, it will be useful to the store manager or college cafeteria director who is caught off-guard with a request to remove a particular product, with the assertion that doing so will aid the cause of justice.

The publication encourages those receiving a BDS request to do “due diligence,” and recognize that BDS is a contentious issue, with proponents and opponents both having strongly held beliefs about justice. It provides examples where a BDS request has hastily been agreed to, then retracted.

“This publication is intended as a useful starting point for those who want to or need to understand BDS,” said Justus Rosenberg, president of the Foundation.

Among the case studies are the disinvitation (later reversed) of Jewish American singer Matisyahu from a Spanish music festival, Harvard University’s dining services removal of Soda Stream (quickly overturned by Harvard and acknowledged as a “mistake”), and the false assertion from BDS activists that Hampshire College had divested.

The guide tracks the history of BDS, how it has impacted different targets (campus, food sellers, artists), and highlights how BDS negatively impacts the quest for a peaceful resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The Justus & Karin Rosenberg Foundation supports efforts to combat antisemitism, hatred, and the demonization of Israel through gifts and direct engagement of the Foundation staff, with an emphasis on programing helping college students.